Anti-LGBTQ Laws are Propagating as Violence, Undermining Transgender Health

By: Ranier Simons, ADAP Blog Guest Contributor

As 2024 ends there is the painful reality that Donald J. Trump is returning to The White House, and with him promises of rolling back protections for LGBTQ people…and in some cases, even denying them care. The anxiety and fear are very authentic, and there is real world evidence of how discriminatory policies adversely impact already marginalized communities. One glowing example is how HIV prevention is undermined by LGBTQ-related attacks (legislation) and violence!

Photo Source: Le Monde

The concept of infrastructure does not always connote a physical embodiment of something. Infrastructure also encompasses societal structures, including culturally pervasive attitudes and legal policies. The problematic domestic and global infrastructure adversely affecting the lives of LGBTQ people is harmful to their well-being on many levels, including HIV prevention. The societal infrastructure set against LGBTQ contains aspects of physical violence as well as anti-LGBTQ legislation. The rate of violence perpetrated against LGBTQ in general, in addition to specific Transgender violence, is higher than the heterosexual general population.[1] Transgender violence and anti-LGTBQ laws and policies impede HIV prevention efforts, resulting in avoidable individual and public health adverse outcomes.

Over 500 anti-LGBTQ bills were introduced in the United States in 2023, almost tripling in number from 2022 to 2023.[2] This legislation is multi-focused, including attacks on health care, civil rights, public accommodations, and even education.[2] A recent study from the UNC Gillings School of Global Public Health found that there is a clear interconnection between discriminatory anti-LGBTQ legislation and HIV prevention.[3] Anti-LGBTQ legislation and policies adversely affect HIV prevention by increasing stigma and decreasing health care access.[3]

Photo Source: FiveThirtyEight

Many of the laws target transgender people and youth specifically, including efforts to deny gender-affirming care. This includes laws to prohibit the changing of gender or sex on identification or medical records. Some laws are purposed to ban the discussion of LGBTQ issues in schools. Regardless of the focus, the legislation contributes to LGBTQ stigma that even occurs in health settings.[4] This is due to a history of pathologizing LGBTQ identity, behavior, and desire in medicine.[4] Two-thirds of LGBTQ adults have experienced discrimination in the past year compared to four in ten non-LGBTQ adults.[4] The stigma fueled by anti-LGBTQ legislation is dehumanizing. It adversely affects the self-worth of individuals affected, which contributes to discouraging positive health-seeking behaviors and influences treatment when it is obtained.

Testing and PrEP use are significant tenets of HIV prevention. The UNC study showed that PrEP use was lower in states with more anti-LGBTQ legislation activity. Youth living in states with fewer anti-LGBTQ policies or counties with majorities of Democratic voters had higher levels of PrEP use. This positive increase in PrEP use was compounded for youth who lived in both a more progressive state and county.[4] Approximately 7.6% of U.S. adults identify as LGBTQ in 2024, and that number is increasing. Regular testing is a part of PrEP adherence. When stigma negatively affects access to testing, it simultaneously weakens the ability to maintain PrEP adherence even if PrEP is available.

Anti-LGBTQ laws are propagating concurrently as violence, specifically against transgender individuals, is an issue. One study out of San Diego, for example, showed that there were 229 documented cases of fatal violence against transgender women in the United States between 2013 and 2021.[5] The bulk of these cases, 78%, were Black victims, which included Afro-Latinas. Over half of these occurred in the South, followed in prevalence by the Midwest. This also reflects the number of recent anti-LGBTQ bills, with most being introduced in the South and the Midwest.[6] As of November 19, 2024, the Human Rights Campaign reports 372 transgender and gender-expansive victims of fatal violence from 2013 to the present.[7] These fatalities are only the reported ones. The actual numbers are estimated to be higher.

Prevention of violence against transgender people is a public health issue. Anti-LGBTQ policies and laws amplify the insecurity of daily existence that transgender individuals face. Adversity in dealing with daily survival is compounded by discrimination and lack of access to health care. Globally, on average, approximately 2/3 of transgender individuals are aware of their HIV status.[8] Also globally, the percentage of transgender individuals who avoid HIV testing due to discrimination and stigma is estimated to range from 47% to 73%. Additionally, those who have experienced discrimination in a healthcare setting are three times more likely to avoid seeking out healthcare than transgender people who have not experienced it.[8]

Photo Source: CDC

Social attitudes, the reality of violence, and anti-LGBT laws, including criminalization based on gender identity, contribute to the isolation of transgender people. Regardless of whether the isolation is externally or internally propagated, it adversely affects their mental health. Transgender individuals’ continuous exposure to harassment, bias, and discrimination contributes to poor mental health.[6] Poor mental health leads to things such as substance abuse and other detrimental patterns of behavior, which are barriers to effective HIV prevention, which includes medication adherence for transgender individuals living with HIV. 

Approximately one million people identify as transgender in the U.S., with 9.2% of those living with HIV. In addition to intravenous drug use, unsafe injection practices while injecting hormones can contribute to the increased likelihood of HIV transmission.[7] Sexual violence against transgender individuals also contributes to HIV transmission, especially since it is mainly unreported, and the victims do not seek out medical attention. Additionally, transgender people face housing and employment discrimination, which exacerbates challenges with maintaining proactive health maintenance, including HIV prevention.[7]

The adverse impact of HIV prevention challenges among people who identify as LGBTQ because of anti-LGBTQ laws and policies is significant. It is imperative to repeal toxic legislation and create beneficial policies that strengthen infrastructure to support HIV prevention and care. Legal protections and proactive policies will help fight against stigma and systemic structural barriers.

[1] Truman, J. L., Morgan, R. E., & U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, Bureau of Justice Statistics. (2022). Violent Victimization by sexual orientation and gender Identity, 2017–2020. In Statistical Brief. https://bjs.ojp.gov/content/pub/pdf/vvsogi1720.pdf

[2] Choi, A. (2024, January 22). Record number of anti-LGBTQ bills were introduced in 2023. Retrieved from https://www.cnn.com/politics/anti-lgbtq-plus-state-bill-rights-dg/index.html

[3] Kelly, N. K., Ranapurwala, S. I., Pence, B. W., Hightow-Weidman, L. B., Slaughter-Acey, J., French, A. L., Hosek, S., & Pettifor, A. E. (2024). The relationship between anti-LGBTQ legislation and HIV prevention among sexual and gender minoritized youth. AIDS (London, England), 38(10), 1543–1552. https://doi.org/10.1097/QAD.0000000000003926

[4] Dawson, L., Kates, J., Montero, A., and Kirzinger, A. (2024, September 30). LGBTQ Health Policy. Retrieved from https://www.kff.org/health-policy-101-lgbtq-health-policy/

[5] Halliwell, P., Blumenthal, J., Kennedy, R., Lahn, L., & Smith, L. R. (2024). Characterizing the prevalence and perpetrators of documented fatal violence against Black transgender women in the United States (2013–2021). Violence Against Women. https://doi.org/10.1177/10778012241289425 

[6] ACLU. (2024). Mapping Attacks on LGBTQ Rights in U.S. State Legislatures in 2024. Retrieved from https://www.aclu.org/legislative-attacks-on-lgbtq-rights-2024

[7] HRC. (2014, November 19). The Epidemic of Violence Against the Transgender & Gender-Expansive Community in the U.S. Retrieved from https://reports.hrc.org/an-epidemic-of-violence-2024#epidemic-numbers

[8] UNAIDS. (2021). HIV and Transgender and Other Gender-Diverse People: Human Rights Fact Sheet Series. Retrieved from https://www.unaids.org/sites/default/files/media_asset/04-hiv-human-rights-factsheet-transgender-gender-diverse_en.pdf

Disclaimer: Guest blogs do not necessarily reflect the views of the ADAP Advocacy Association, but rather they provide a neutral platform whereby the author serves to promote open, honest discussion about public health-related issues and updates.